Matthew 5:14-16

“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”

Introduction

The passage of scripture I just read was all we really needed for this devotional. But to dive deeper into it for a moment, I want to focus on the three points or takeaways it leaves us with. It gives us an identity, a mission, and a cause. Sure, that may not sound earth shattering to you. But sometimes the simplest lessons and proclamations of Scripture of the ones we needed more than we knew. Sometimes are the ones we are pushing back against the hardest. And just might be the challenge we need to take our spark of the gospel, and it’s work in our lives to the next level. Today, beyond reading to you my thoughts on this passage of Scripture, it is my prayer that I will challenge you to the core of who you are regarding the condition of your relationship with Christ Jesus. Look around you…The world is falling apart. The questions are increasing, the despair is deepening, the chaos is rampant. But there is a mighty and gracious hope for those who know God. Let’s dig in.

Identity. Identity is Who. Identity is a term thrown around in Christian talking points, podcasts, and panels. You could search Identity and find countless sermon messages on YouTube about the Christian perspective on where we find and hold onto our identity. But I want to go back to the raw facts regarding your identity. Your identity is simply explained as “Who You Are.” Your identity is the most intimate and defining factor of your being, your pursuits in this life, and the feelings you feel deep down in your soul. If you do not know or feel confident in your identity today, then you either do not know God, or you have left the table of your covenant with Him. I want to be clear with you. Because at the heart of the Gospel is a clarity of our condition, our wants, and our worth. On this conference today are people that either know God, or do not. And people who are either engaging with God and His goodness for their life, or they are walking in an active separation from the favor of His presence. What I have shared thus far may be sobering and may feel direct. But the realities of this ground war called life are very real, and demand that we awaken from the slumber we can find ourselves in. Matthew 5 describes those who know God as the beacon of direction and hope in the world. A city set on a hill is the ultimate destination for a weary yet curious traveler. A city on a hill is the blueprint for other cities who want to follow its course of success and victory. It is set on firm foundation; its systems and reputations are known to all those around it. In other words, a city on a hill is sure of itself. It is not infatuated with worry concerning its neighboring adversaries. It is set in stone, and sure of its lasting survival. Additionally, a city on a hill is proud of its healthy and victorious state. The state of the city is strong, and unafraid to broadcast that strength for the world to see and hear. It is not hidden, it is not dim, and it is not fragile. And finally, a city on a hill is inviting. It welcomes those who seek refuge, who have questions, and long to be heard. It greets them with the confidence of its spirit, but with the compassion of its heart. It heals them, restores them, and rallies them to a new way of life. The life of the city. A city on a hill. Your identity is a high calling. Because it is not about you anymore. It is about Who. It is about Him, and the people He will send to you with their questions and hurts and sorrows.

Mission. Mission is What. What is it that we do with our life that transcends titles, places, circumstances and positioning. That’s bigger than our feelings, our inadequacies, or our dreams. You cannot know your mission if you do not know your identity, and you cannot cling to your identity if you do not follow through with the mission. The mission is the fame, the name, and propping up of the King of the City. It is obedience and carrying out of His vision for the surrounding areas. It is the marching orders for the ground war I eluded too early. The mission is the glory of God. To magnify and radiate His goodness in our lives almost to a point that doesn’t make sense to the world around us. I think you know what I mean. It is the advocation and making much of Him in the best and worst moments of our life. This mission is carried into the operating room. The biopsy results. It’s the mission you carry into the bad habits, or unprecedented depression. The legal documents you didn’t want to sign, the setback, the ten-year long tunnel with no lights glimmering at the end. It is that mission, that proves reliable, immovable, and constant. The one where you start having conversations about Jesus with people that are hurting less than you. When the mission is Jesus, you have gone to war with the inner self and defeated the odds the world had in store for you. Because you have taken your gaze off of yourself and transfixed your life onto Him. And that just means that big things can happen. To tap into your mission by becoming a vessel of God’s vision is greatest joy you will know on this side of eternity. Nothing can replace it, and because it is irreplaceable, nothing can stop you. No circumstance and no difficulty in this life can defeat and override His mission. That’s why you should be smiling when someone walks through the door. Not because everything is working out or because the healing came or because the meds kicked in. But because His mission in your life proved to be enough, sufficient and adequate for every moment. And so just like your identity, your mission is bigger than you. Its about Him. And the people He will send to you with their questions and hurts and sorrows.

Cause. Cause is Why. You have probably noticed the trend by now. Diving into Matthew 5 and answering each question regarding the Who, the What and the Why all points to Jesus. Just as the trinity is an inseparable reality, so is the identity, mission and cause that God has breathed into our lungs and souls. The cause is to radiate God before men. That our friends and families and the strangers we meet might be able to experience the attitudes and statements and actions of our life and come to determine that we are not about ourselves. That there is an outside of this world driving force in our life. That we are all about something, Someone, much greater than us. We are an advocate for the work of the Holy Spirit in our life. If the ways we choose exist in this world, which we testify to be our home away from home, if it is not turning heads and sparking conversations about Jesus, then it is okay and right and obedient to do inventory. A radical invitation to the Lord to search and know our hearts and bring the forging Heat of His grace into areas of our life that desperately need it. Your identity is not secured without the mission. And your mission is impossible to carry forth without being sure and anchored to the cause. Your cause is the glory of God. In the good days, the bad days, everything that seems perfect and the most unfair moments of your life…they all propose to you a radical choice to make much of God. Jesus knew exactly the depth and importance of the words He spoke in Matthew 5, because he was the embodiment of fallowing His father into everything that did not make sense and would not feel good. This is what makes this request and command of God so powerful. Because it was already felt, carried through, and completed by the walk, death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. So if you are struggling to find an affection for the cause of Christ in your life, be quick to remember that He did too…Jesus cried too, and asked for another path. Jesus questioned too, and longed to communicate to the father. Jesus admitted that it was all messed up, too… And so the next time you are feeling sorry for yourself, run to the father. It is there you will find open and understanding arms. Through the goodness of His word and the choice of your obedience, you will find rest and healing. More than the strength to carry on, you will find the joy to conquer all the is before you. Because the conquering has already been done, the war is already won. The cross weighed a ton, and was carried by one, and your only call is to worship and trust the Son, of the living God. You can do this; it is already done. You can finish the race; the race is finished. It is finished.

Conclusion

So where do you go from here? What changes? That’s the question left for you and me every moment we move forward. How do we leave the throne of Grace as different people, never being the same, never losing our wonder. Because in a world that is asking us to consider the investments and take-home benefits, we are living for a different world and different city on a hill that is asking us to consider the contributions to His glory and the take them with us decisions we need to make. Who can benefit from our testimony? Who can find an alternative hope and rescue because of the way we today have chosen to shine our light? There are no dim lights in the kingdom expansion project of Heaven. There’s you and me, doing the very most, for the One who saw fit to involve Himself in our story, becoming the eternal host of our heart, and give us a reason to live again, to shine again, to exist well, once again. I want to be clear again, because this is critical. God has arrived at the sitting room of your heart. He has dreams and visions and splendid ideas of how He wants to use you, inspire you, and empower you for His good work in the world. But you have to want it. The kerosene that lights your light is your willingness to walk in obedience and worship. There is no simpler equation. An obedient heart and a willing spirit before God, regardless of how hard it is, come what may, is the keys to the city on a hill. To the city of contentment, peace, and joyful activities. Who is God to you? Your walk of obedience reflects exactly just how high your view of Him is. It reflects just much you trust in His ability to work in your life. And it displays to a dying world just how alive and beautiful and radiant those can be who know, and have placed their entire faith in Him.

Faith. Forsaking All, I, Trust, Him.

Matthew 5:14-16 is the question of a lifetime. What will you do with what God has given to you.

CLOSING PRAYER

God,

We ask you for the courage to live and practice a faith that is limitless.

We plead with you to grant to us the courage and resilience to do mighty things in the mighty name of Jesus.

That your fame and the expansion of your plans for this world would be more than a fable or distant thought. That we would be the doers of your will. On earth as it is in Heaven, may we overwhelm the world with your supremacy and grace.

May your goodness not only be an inflowing of change in our lives, but an outflowing decision to leave no one behind in our pursuit of you.

Lord, you know how much we need you. You know the things we hold close, that hold us back and keep us reserved.

You know what we are not sharing with others. The secrets, the shame, the sorrow.

Remind us of the freedom and joy that can be found when we run to you, and drop those things at your feet.

You, the author and perfector of our faith and promise keeper of our life.

We lay it all down, and we choose to trust you.

It is in your name, and the power of your Spirit that we pray.

Amen